2013 Green Mountain NF - Big Branch & Peru Wilderness

The Green Mountain National Forest covers almost 400,000 acres in southwestern and central Vermont and is Vermont's one and only national forest. It encompasses eight wilderness areas including the Lye Brook Wilderness in southern Vermont. Lye Brook is named after the Lye Brook, which flows through the western half of the Wilderness. The majority of the Lye Brook Wilderness is on a forested plateau dotted with ponds, bogs, waterfalls, streams and pools. Moose, black bear, deer, beaver, porcupine, bobcat, wild turkey, toads, frogs, and salamanders all call this area home. The northern hardwoods (birch, beech, and maple) along with spruce cover most of the wilderness and make for a breathtaking display of autumn colors each fall.

The Green Mountain National Forest covers almost 400,000 acres in southwestern and central Vermont and is Vermont's one and only national forest. It encompasses eight wilderness areas including the Big Branch and Peru Wilderness. The Big Branch and Peru Wilderness areas are separated by only a snowmobile access corridor, otherwise they form a nearly contiguous 14,000 acre wild land core. Approximately 80 percent of the forest leafs out in northern hardwoods--maple, beech, and birch--and straddles the steep slopes and summits of the Green Mountains. Most of the two wildernesses are forested, with Elbow Swamp, a large wetland, lying on the eastern edge. The weather is cool from spring through fall, with spectacular outbursts of colorful leaves in September and October. The Big Branch and Peru wilderness areas provide a home for wild turkey, beaver, moose and substantial populations of white-tailed deer and black bear, while fishers ply for trout in the cool waters flowing through the shaded wilderness. There is a well-established network of trails in the wildernesses, including portions of the Long Trail-Appalachian Trail in each. Off the trail, travel generally is difficult, with thick brush and fallen trees year round.